Toronado turns tables on Dawn Approach in Sussex

Wednesday's Sussex Stakes at Goodwood was billed beforehand as 'the Duel on

the Downs,' and the Group 1 contest did not disappoint as Toronado finished with

a wet-sail to beat his big rival Dawn Approach by a half-length with Richard

Hughes aboard.

Toronado, who received a big cheer from the crowd, had lost out to Dawn

Approach in both the Two Thousand Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes, and

winning training Richard Hannon was pleased to set the record straight.

"I'd say they are two top-class horses," Hannon said. "I told Hughesie to

drop in, it was the only thing he could do from that draw. I didn't want him to

catch the pacemakers coming back. It was looking difficult two furlongs out but

our horse has a hell of a turn of foot.

"Hughesie rode him at home four or five days ago and said he was the best

he'd ever ridden, even better than Canford Cliffs, who was a very good work

horse.

Looking to the future, Hannon's son and assistant Richard added: "We'll see

how he comes out of this but the Jacques le Marois and the Queen Elizabeth II

Stakes are the obvious races. He'll stick to a mile this year but he'll stay in

training next season when perhaps he could step up to 10 furlongs at some

point."

"My plan was 'wide, fast and late' and luckily it worked," Hughes said. "I

didn't want to get into a battle with Dawn Approach so I wanted to get there

late and fast. When I kicked him in the belly he was not as instant on that

ground as he would have been on fast ground. It was a great race and, when I

didn't go by Dawn Approach quickly I thought 'oh no here we go again,' but he

was very brave. He's brilliant."

Jim Bolger, trainer of Dawn Approach, said: "It was a top performance. We

were just beaten by a better horse on the day.

"I am not concerned with a rematch. We still have to figure out exactly where

we go from here. Whatever turns up, turns up. There are a couple of

possibilities but time will tell all."

Cap O'Rushes, with Mickael Barzalona up, stepped away from his role as

Godolphin pacemaker into the spotlight as classic candidate in his own right by

taking the Gordon Stakes by a determined head from Excess Knowledge. In the

process he marked a significant landmark for his trainer Charlie Appleby, who

recently took over the beleaguered Moulton Paddocks division of Sheikh

Mohammed's Godolphin operation.

In the 12-furlong Group 3 event, Cap O'Rushes was Appleby's first Group

winner with his first Group runner, and also made it one-for-one for him at

Goodwood. The son of New Approach finished fourth in the Irish Derby at The

Curragh last month, with his better-fancied stablemate Libertarian unplaced.

"It didn't work out for Libertarian but Cap O'Rushes ran a really good race,"

Appleby said. "We brought him back home and freshened him up, and he's come on

since then.

"We were quite confident today, the way he's progressed in the past few

weeks. He saw the trip out really well and really appreciated the cut in the

ground, as a horse with his short action would. We'll take it one step at a time

with him but the plan would be the Great Voltigeur and then the St Leger."

Cap O'Rushes may meet Libertarian again in the Great Voltigeur Stakes at

York, but this time on his own merits.

"Libertarian has had a break since Ireland and we'd be quite happy to run

both of them at York," Appleby said.

Excess Knowledge is heading to the St Leger after finishing a luckless

second.

"If you get stopped, you get stopped. One wandered in front of ours and we

then had to get going again," trainer John Gosden said.

"The Leger must be on his agenda and we'll see where we go from here. Arctic

Cosmos got beaten here and then won at Doncaster and we could go straight there

or look at the Great Voltigeur. Today was a good Leger trial but there was no

pace."

Third-placed Spillway delighted trainer Eve Johnson Houghton, who said: "He's

still a big green baby, even with all the racing he has had. It's great to get

black-type because his owner-breeder Luke (Neale) has the mare.

"I made a mistake running him in the wrong race at Royal Ascot, we should

have gone for the King Edward VII Stakes. He will improve next year but will

probably go for the St Leger. He's in the Great Voltigeur and I don't see why he

won't run there."

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